Tucker Jr. Top Fund-Raiser in Scramble for Assembly

If it’s money that matters in politics, then Curtis R. Tucker Jr. is headed for victory in the race for the 50th Assembly District seat long held by his late father.

With the Feb. 7 special election less than 10 days away, Tucker holds an enormous fund-raising advantage over one Republican and two Democratic rivals.

Final pre-election campaign finance reports filed with the Los Angeles County registrar-recorder show that Tucker has raised $119,734, primarily from doctors and other special interest groups in Sacramento.

Donation from Fonda

Tucker also received $1,000 checks from actress Jane Fonda and her husband, Assemblyman Tom Hayden (D-Santa Monica).

A legislative aide, Tucker has spent $95,248 primarily on campaign mailers, polling and political consultants and had $21,984 on hand at the end of the reporting period Jan. 21.

None of his rivals in the race to represent the heavily Democratic district met Thursday’s deadline for filing a campaign report, but none are believed to have raised anywhere close to what Tucker has collected.

Inglewood school board member Lois Hill-Hale, a Democrat, said Friday that she failed to file a campaign finance report because she was not provided with the forms. She said she intends to file the document after meeting with her treasurer.

Hill-Hale estimated that she has raised less than $10,000 and said she is relying on volunteers to promote her candidacy.

Republican Michael Davis said Friday that he had missed the campaign reporting deadline but hoped to file his report by Monday. He estimated that he has collected about $11,000, including $5,000 from the California Republican Party.

Democrat Carl McGill could not be reached for comment.

There is a $10 fine for each day a campaign finance report is late.

Tucker has been raising and spending campaign money as if he was the incumbent in the race to replace his father, Assemblyman Curtis R. Tucker. The elder Tucker died last October, but nevertheless was reelected in November. Gov. George Deukmejian called next month’s special election to fill the vacancy.

If Tucker wins a majority of the votes cast, he will win the seat outright; otherwise he will face a runoff April 11.

The district includes Inglewood, Lennox, Westchester, El Segundo and parts of South Central Los Angeles.

Assembly Speaker Willie Brown (D-San Francisco) made it clear early that Tucker was his choice and other Democratic lawmakers and elected officials quickly fell into line. The Speaker’s preference for Tucker was a factor in persuading other potentially strong candidates--Inglewood Mayor Edward Vincent, Inglewood Councilman Daniel Tabor and Los Angeles City Councilman Robert Farrell--from entering the race.

Who’s Who in Sacramento

The younger Tucker’s campaign report reads like a who’s who of special interests in Sacramento, with the medical establishment dominating. Doctors, hospitals and other health care concerns were major donors to the elder Tucker, who chaired the powerful Assembly Health Committee.

Tucker received the maximum $5,000 contribution from the Los Angeles County Physicians Committee and the Inglewood-Marina political action committee. This campaign is the first to be subject to campaign contribution limits imposed by Proposition 73, which took effect January 1.

Tucker also received $5,000 from the campaign committee of Assembly Rules Committee Chairman Tom Bane (D-Tarzana) on Dec. 29, just two days before the new law banned all transfers of funds between legislative candidates. A $750 contribution from Sen. Bill Greene (D-Los Angeles) received after Jan. 1 had to be returned.

Large contributions to Tucker included $3,000 donations from Centinela Medical Center, California Faculty Assn. and the California School Employees Assn.; $2,500 from Service Employees International Union; $2,000 from California Professional Firefighters, California Assn. of Highway Patrolmen and Southern California Edison; $1,000 from Hollywood Park race track, as well as separate $1,000 contributions from Beverly Hills developer Albert Gersten and his wife, Marilynn, and $500 contributions from the Inglewood Police Assn. and the Ernest and Julio Gallo Winery.